by Neil Coughlan and Andy Stevens Late one night, Andy Stevens, then a Center for Limnology graduate student, pulled a minnow trap out of the water off of the Hasler Lab pier in Lake Mendota. …
Ecological Processes
Lake Is a Rainbow: Weird, Warm Fall Makes “Three-Layer Lake Cake”
by Luke Loken Autumn is typically associated with fall colors, pumpkin spice lattes, and cool temperatures. However this year, much of the Midwest has been stuck in summer-like conditions. And these record temperatures come with …
Despite Changes in Climate, Land Use and Management Practices, Lakes Stay Surprisingly Static
Over the last few decades, change has defined our environment in the United States. Agriculture intensified. Urban areas sprawled. The climate warmed. Intense rainstorms became more common. But, says a new study, while those kinds …
Trout Lake Research Rewind: Fyke Nets & Native Mussels
by Riley Steinbrenner Week Seven This summer, CFL graduate students Martin Perales and Holly Embke are busy catching fish on their two study lakes–Sandy Beach Lake and McDermott Lake in Iron County–using a lot of …
Investment in Science Crucial to Tackling “Grand Challenges” for the Great Lakes
by Cheryl Reitan & Adam Hinterthuer Duluth, MN – In September of 2014, fifty-eight scientists gathered to discuss the most pressing research needs in the Great Lakes region. Even though the five lakes contain nearly …
You’re Not Seeing Mayflies Around Town – Those Are Midges
As I jumped on my bike and left the Lowell Elementary playground after dropping my kids off yesterday morning, I overheard a conversation between two parents that I hear pretty consistently this time of year. …
Thinking Big About Invasive Species: Q&A with Jake Vander Zanden
A recent study in the journal, Ecosystems, says that, when it comes to invasive species, it’s time to think bigger. While the movement of species from their native ranges to exotic lands is a major …
What Lies Beneath: Sudden Invasion of a Wisconsin Lake Wasn’t So Sudden After All
In the fall of 2009, a tiny aquatic creature known as the spiny water flea showed up in a lake where it had never before been seen. At first, students in the UW-Madison undergraduate limnology …
Blog Redux: What Less Lake Ice Means for Ecology, Economy and Ourselves
NOTE: This post originally ran on January 17, 2012. In the four of the five years since this post, Lake Mendota has frozen over well after its “median” freeze date, and in three of the …
Fish Fry Day: Western Mosquitofish and the Danger of Good Intentions
It’s Fish Fry Day and fish is on the menu! We’re working our way across the “Fishes of Wisconsin” poster finding morsels of info for every species of fishes found in Wisconsin. Today’s special: the …